Hundreds of guns handed in during Scottish amnesty

Weapons seized by police included a machine gun, an assault rifle and a pistol dating back to World War One

Hundreds of illegal firearms and air weapons have been handed in to police during a two-week amnesty campaign.

A total of 474 firearms, 690 air weapons and 337 lots of ammunition were received at police stations around Scotland.

These included a machine gun, an AK47 assault rifle, and a pistol dating back to World War One.

Supt Ronnie Megaughin said getting the weapons off the streets "lowers the risk of harm within our communities".

He said: "Although the surrender campaign has now come to an end, we continue to work to remove illegally held weapons circulating in Scotland."

One elderly man in Fife handed in nine firearms to his local station in Glenrothes, including several pistols and rifles.

Police said guns were often found in attics or garages and had been handed down through generations within families, but noted that "there is always the possibility that weapons can fall into the hands of criminals either through lack of security or other criminal means".

Scottish Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf said: "Whilst firearms offences are at historically low levels in Scotland, we will continue to work with Police Scotland to keep Scotland's streets safe."